This article is from the source 'rtcom' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.rt.com/usa/441140-facebook-purge-victims-speak/
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| 'Like a death blow': Banned alternative media speak to RT after mass Facebook purge | 'Like a death blow': Banned alternative media speak to RT after mass Facebook purge |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| Some 800 anti-establishment accounts and pages have been yanked from Facebook in a sweeping crackdown the social media giant framed as a fight against spammers. RT talked to those who were targeted in the cleansing. | Some 800 anti-establishment accounts and pages have been yanked from Facebook in a sweeping crackdown the social media giant framed as a fight against spammers. RT talked to those who were targeted in the cleansing. |
| Among the hundreds of pages and accounts Facebook and Twitter took down were those both on the political left and right, ranging from conspiracy theorists and police brutality watchers, to news outlets with non-mainstream angles, While their content could be at times described as controversial, the bulk of the banished pages boasted large followings and outreach. | Among the hundreds of pages and accounts Facebook and Twitter took down were those both on the political left and right, ranging from conspiracy theorists and police brutality watchers, to news outlets with non-mainstream angles, While their content could be at times described as controversial, the bulk of the banished pages boasted large followings and outreach. |
| READ MORE: ‘Land of censorship & home of the fake’: Alternative voices on Facebook and Twitter’s crackdown | READ MORE: ‘Land of censorship & home of the fake’: Alternative voices on Facebook and Twitter’s crackdown |
| RT spoke to some of the voices silenced by the Facebook move. Here is what they had to say. | RT spoke to some of the voices silenced by the Facebook move. Here is what they had to say. |
| Jason Bassler, The Free Thought Project, 3.1mn followers | Jason Bassler, The Free Thought Project, 3.1mn followers |
| The Free Thought Project bills itself as a "hub for free thinking conversations." Both its Facebook and Twitter accounts were shut down in the pre-midterms purge. Jason Bassler, who co-founded the project in 2013, told RT that what Facebook did is an act of political censorship and has nothing to do with its stated goal to clean up its platform from spam. | The Free Thought Project bills itself as a "hub for free thinking conversations." Both its Facebook and Twitter accounts were shut down in the pre-midterms purge. Jason Bassler, who co-founded the project in 2013, told RT that what Facebook did is an act of political censorship and has nothing to do with its stated goal to clean up its platform from spam. |
| By spinning the story as a fight against unworthy news trash, Facebook itself is misleading users with its own version of fake news, he said: "This is nothing more than political censorship and trying to eradicate certain political ideologies." | By spinning the story as a fight against unworthy news trash, Facebook itself is misleading users with its own version of fake news, he said: "This is nothing more than political censorship and trying to eradicate certain political ideologies." |
| Nicholas Bernabe, founder of The Anti-Media, 2.1mn followers | Nicholas Bernabe, founder of The Anti-Media, 2.1mn followers |
| Nicholas Bernabe, the blogger and entrepreneur behind the independent news aggregator The Anti-Media, believes that "the most troubling" in Facebook's treatment of media pages is that tech giants are now trying to police cultural dialogue by posing as politically neutral. | Nicholas Bernabe, the blogger and entrepreneur behind the independent news aggregator The Anti-Media, believes that "the most troubling" in Facebook's treatment of media pages is that tech giants are now trying to police cultural dialogue by posing as politically neutral. |
| He added that the majority of the banned pages held "very anti-establishment, very anti-authoritarian views," that appealed to those whose take on election is very different from what mainstream media has to offer. | He added that the majority of the banned pages held "very anti-establishment, very anti-authoritarian views," that appealed to those whose take on election is very different from what mainstream media has to offer. |
| READ MORE: FBI investigating as Facebook says hackers accessed data of 29 million users | READ MORE: FBI investigating as Facebook says hackers accessed data of 29 million users |
| Matt Savoy, The Free Thought Project, 3.1mn followers | Matt Savoy, The Free Thought Project, 3.1mn followers |
| It is hard to overestimate the implications for those that were swept up in the purge, Matt Savoy of The Free Thought Project said. Many of the affected websites will be out of business and "thousands of people will be out of work." | It is hard to overestimate the implications for those that were swept up in the purge, Matt Savoy of The Free Thought Project said. Many of the affected websites will be out of business and "thousands of people will be out of work." |
| Journalists did not get any time to prepare for the looming crackdown, Savoy said, and at first the staff thought it was a mere glitch. | Journalists did not get any time to prepare for the looming crackdown, Savoy said, and at first the staff thought it was a mere glitch. |
| Matt Bergman, Punk Rock Libertarians, 190,000 followers | Matt Bergman, Punk Rock Libertarians, 190,000 followers |
| Matt Bergman, who founded the Punk Rock Libertarians in 2010, told RT that his "The Daily Liberator" podcast was taken down from Facebook without any explanation. Bergman's own account along with those of other page admins were also briefly suspended. | Matt Bergman, who founded the Punk Rock Libertarians in 2010, told RT that his "The Daily Liberator" podcast was taken down from Facebook without any explanation. Bergman's own account along with those of other page admins were also briefly suspended. |
| The purge is the result of the pressure the Congress put on Mark Zuckerberg, and its first targets were independent outlets "right of the dial," since it's easier to get away with banning relatively small outlets than major channels like RT, he argued. | The purge is the result of the pressure the Congress put on Mark Zuckerberg, and its first targets were independent outlets "right of the dial," since it's easier to get away with banning relatively small outlets than major channels like RT, he argued. |
| Bergman said he is filing an appeal in a bid to restore the account. | Bergman said he is filing an appeal in a bid to restore the account. |
| Dan Dicks, Investigative Journalist, 350,000 followers | Dan Dicks, Investigative Journalist, 350,000 followers |
| Vancouver-based investigative journalist Dan Dicks, who writes for The Press for Truth, said the Facebook crackdown was "clearly political" as it saw tech companies assuming the role of "the gatekeepers of political thought." | Vancouver-based investigative journalist Dan Dicks, who writes for The Press for Truth, said the Facebook crackdown was "clearly political" as it saw tech companies assuming the role of "the gatekeepers of political thought." |
| Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, expunged from Facebook and Twitter, might have been "the first domino to fall," but now the crackdown has widened to affect smaller outlets that vie for minds of the people on par with mainstream media, he said. | |
| "This is the mainstream media trying to wipe out their competition, so that the oligarchy can maintain status quo," Dicks said. | "This is the mainstream media trying to wipe out their competition, so that the oligarchy can maintain status quo," Dicks said. |
| The crackdown on anti-establishment voices will return to bite Facebook, UK Labour Party activist and political theorist Dr. Richard Barbrook argued. | The crackdown on anti-establishment voices will return to bite Facebook, UK Labour Party activist and political theorist Dr. Richard Barbrook argued. |
| Facebook and other tech companies who feel compelled to impose more "traditional media censorship" are likely to see a mass exodus from their platforms, he believes. | Facebook and other tech companies who feel compelled to impose more "traditional media censorship" are likely to see a mass exodus from their platforms, he believes. |
| "The problem is if they are doing it too much, people would be gone somewhere else, where they don't have network effects working against them," Barbrook told RT. | "The problem is if they are doing it too much, people would be gone somewhere else, where they don't have network effects working against them," Barbrook told RT. |